CG's Annual Outdoor Furnishing Faves!

By Chelsea



Hi friends! I don't need a calendar to know it's that time of year again. All I have to do is check my blog stats and see that a large surge of hits are coming through the outdoor dining posts published from the past two years, (here and here)! I had the same surge of hits at this time last year from the outdoor dining post I'd done the year prior. This only means one thing: Spring is coming and it'll soon be time to take our entertaining outdoors!

The past two years I've compiled a list of favorite pieces that caught my eye from the new Spring collection at IKEA. Matt and I had wonderful luck finding exactly what we wanted there a few years ago after our brand new deck was ready for furniture. Typically, their Outdoor line is colorful, affordable, and fun -which was exactly what we were looking for when we decked out our deck! This year it seems to be lacking a tiny bit in personality. There is definitely not as much color as in the past few years. So this year I'm going to expand a bit to include World Market. I love what they have to offer, although they are pricier. So I've combed through what both stores have to offer and come up with my own list of favorites based on affordability and personality!

Kicking things off is this colorful table from World Market. The metal base is such a cool punch of color, (and also comes in red)!

World Market Blue Beer Garden Dining Table

$229

A fresh and affordable pairing with this colorful table, (which I would consider a bit of a splurge), is the IKEA FEJAN Folding chair in white. Easy to wipe, easy to store. 

IKEA FEJAN Folding Chair
$10

These two together with World Market's Orange Glass Wasp Catcher

Next up is this rustic wood table from World Market. Love the proportions of this and the slats on the top!

World Market Catalina Dining Table

$249

And back for the third year in a row is my favorite outdoor dining chair, the IKEA ROXO chair, (we have four in yellow around our grey FALSTER table, also by IKEA)
IKEA ROXO Chair
$20

Aren't they great together?! (Tin planter from IKEA)

For a more industrial, modern look I love this ENHOLMEN table from IKEA. And the price is not too shabby, either!
IKEA ENHOLMEN Table
$159

For such a simple table I paired a slightly more interesting chair from World Market. Also comes in blue, black, yellow, red and green!
World Market Koi Orange Cadiz Metal Chair
$119.98 for set of two

What a fun contrast between table and chairs! Tin planters from IKEA.

Trying to fill a smaller space? No problem! You can still squeeze style into a smaller outdoor space. This end table from World Market is clean and simple and won't make a large footprint.
World Market White Durresi Metal Side Table
$49.99

Now here's a chair for the long haul. I have a feeling once you park your caboose in this cutie you're not gonna be getting up anytime soon.

IKEA PS 2012 Easy Chair - Yellow, (also comes in white)

$149

I could spend a long evening out with this set. Green glass jars from World Market.

Another space saver, this stool from World Market would make a fun little table for a small area.

World Market Yellow Lailani Stool

$79.99

This funny IKEA chair really just made me laugh. But I like it! It looks comfy!
IKEA PS VAGO Easy Chair - blue, (also comes in white)
$29.99

Morning coffee would taste even better with this set, (or your evening drink, whatever it may be)! Paper lanterns from IKEA.

And lastly, for our loungers. This is an IKEA hack idea for anyone interested in a little DIY fun! IKEA hacks are basically transforming IKEA pieces into something a little different by use of paint, and/or minor reconstruction. Start with this cozy, cocooning sofa...

IKEA ENHOLMEN Sofa Combination

$308

...and spray paint it with your color of choice by Rustoleum exterior spray paint! Finish it with a bunch of outdoor pillows, (this handful is from World Market), and you've got yourself a uniquely boho outdoor lounge! I would totally throw a bright sofa in my outdoor area. Actually, I'm really digging this idea...Somebody, please do it!!!

Here is what we put together for our own deck two years ago from IKEA. 4 yellow ROXO chairs, 2 FALSTER armchairs, and a FALSTER table. We've loved how they've held up, how the yellow pops against the gray, and that it's a set we mixed together ourselves. Those are the best kinds in my opinion.

Hop over to see what IKEA has here.
Check out what World Market's got here.
**(This post was not sponsored in any way. All thoughts and opinions are uniquely mine)

There you have it! Love anything you saw? Despise them all? What kind of look do you like to see in an outdoor space?

Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend!

~Chelsea

DIY: Disguise a generic ceiling light

By Chelsea



I'm telling you, if we get one more snow I may resort to painting all our interior walls. When I'm not playing hide & seek with the kids, (which, if you find a good hiding spot, is a great way to get a few minutes of peace and quiet), building train tracks, baking banana bread, changing baby doll clothes, getting chased by 'dinosaurs', and racing matchbox cars, (all of which barely cover the chunk of morning BEFORE breakfast), I've been finding some cool inside projects that I may never have discovered if we weren't snowed in!

This week it was disguising a light. Not a horribly ugly light, but the cheap, generic kind that most builders install. We've all seen these before:

It's not that I consider these an eyesore, but I wanted to present a very easy idea for disguising these simple globes with something a little more modern and unique. This would be a great project for a renter since it doesn't involve removing the light fixture and dealing with wires, etc. We're simply making a little 'disguise'!

To make this simple disguise I just used this black metal fruit basket, (or something), from the thrift store. Not sure exactly what it is, except that I see these all the time at yard sales, thrift stores and the like.

Then I wound it all up in twine.

Almost finished!

Thanks to the little hooks on three of the sides, I just hammered some small wall staples into the ceiling and hung it by the hooks!

Easy to put up, easy to take down. I wish something like this had occurred to me during our apartment years! 

We had two more of these ceiling lights in our home when we moved in - one above the sink in our kitchen, and another in a nook in our basement. Here's what we did in those areas:

Kitchen:

Basement:

In those cases we replaced the lights completely with yard sale finds. Here's the post I wrote on how to replace lights, (written for wire wimps like me)!

I love simple ideas like today's 'disguise' for quick fixes, (whether a permanent solution is permit-able or not). Definitely a renter-worthy project!

Thank you so much for stopping by!

~Chelsea

Newlywed & Canopy Bed

By Cate

I know.  I know.  Where on earth have I been?!  It's been ages since I guest-posted on Chelsea's Garage, but I'm happy to say I am back with a whole suite of fun projects for you.  If you haven't caught up by reading this sweet post by Chels, I recently married Chelsea's brother Caleb!  Since my last post, I have been swamped with wedding planning, honeymooning, moving, being married, and... getting used to living with a boy ;)

So I thought I would start you off with the first tour of a room in our new apartment {and frankly, my favorite} - the master bedroom.  Our bedroom is small and comes with some {BRIGHT} skylights.  After extensively researching my options for how to keep such strong sun out so that Caleb could sleep in, I decided on building a ceiling canopy around our bed.  The curtains are hung from a rectangular frame made from copper pipe and pipe fittings from Home Depot.  There are two curtain panels for the "headboard", one for the top canopy, and 3 pairs {6 total} for the remaining 3 sides.

Here's a close up of the Threshold Tufted Bench from Target.  Although he's petite, I love this guy - and he's a good size for our little 12'x13' Master.

See what I mean about that GLARING skylight.

Close-up of the "headboard" curtain panels - which are now a discontinued print from World Market. 

{Womp. Womp.}

{Before & After} 

Thanks for the warm welcome back!

~ Cate

First piece of Spring!

By Chelsea



Hello there! Three days ago I was looking at the weekend ahead with a pit in my stomach. None of us could walk through the garage, that's how full it was. Saturday morning Matt and I got our kids, (who have kind of become wild animals throughout this fierce winter), outside to do their thing, and we tackled the garage. One mound was a trash pile. The other a donation pile. Here are a few words I would use to describe our garage-clearing experience: Invigorating. Cleansing. Therapeutic. Rejuvenating. Terrifying. (every time I went to pick up a bag or towel or move something that hadn't been moved in months, I was sure I'd see a dead animal. Or worse, a living one). Romantic. (hey, watching my man lift heavy stuff is never a bad thing).

So, when I got to drive the van jam-packed with stuff to donate to the thrift store, I couldn't help stepping inside to check out what they had in the furniture section. I mean, we had just cleared TONS of room, so why not, right?!

True as it may be that I was probably not the right one to go to the thrift store, (especially with all the new space in our garage), I really could not pass up this beauty. Thankfully, Matt agreed!

First piece of the Spring season! 

I have a lot riding on this piece, not least of which is a better mood!

Hello rocker-chic hardware!

So, I'm starting on the piece this week. Old White with light distressing, original hardware. Dimensions are 47.5"L x 30"H x 17.75"D. If you have any interest at all please contact me ASAP at chelseasgarage@gmail.com. Finished pictures will be up when it's done! 

And just so you don't miss it, our beautiful Cate, (SIL, just married my brother, incredibly talented DIYer), will be stopping by soon to share some of the amazing projects she's been working on over the past few months. Stay tuned!

Thank you so much for stopping by!

~Chelsea 

Chelsea's identity crisis

By Chelsea

Hi friends, when I refreshed the whole look and feel of this blog a little while ago I had the hardest time deciding on my 'subtitle'. Before the new look, it had been 'Furniture refinishing. Home decor. Life happening', so I was torn on whether to change it up or keep it the same. Actually, the only change I was considering was removing 'Life happening.' because I never really get into that. It's not that I don't have anything to share about Life, it's that I don't think it would be interesting. Even though Life here is full and moving forward for better or worse, (depends on the day), I just assume that anyone would find that stuff mundane.

But, a very sweet repeat client who I wish I had more time to see amidst Life happening sent me a dear email to inform me of her newest little one on the way. After sharing her exciting news, she told me she missed seeing my family on here. I used to share more pictures and talk more about them, but for no reason in particular, I've gotten away from that. It touched my heart that she cared about them and enjoyed seeing them now and then on my humble blog. (Thank you MY.:) I didn't tell you how much that meant to me) So, I've pondered that quite a bit. Why do I keep Life and this business so separate?

The funny thing is, just as I don't talk much about Life on Chelsea's Garage, I also don't talk about Chelsea's Garage hardly at all outside of this context right here. It sometimes feels like I'm leading two lives. Herein lies the identity crisis. Am I a stay at home Mom raising our three little ones to the best of my abilities, (around the clock)? Or am I a (very) small business owner with dreams and goals and aspirations? Is it okay that I enjoy being both? Even still, when friends ask how I'm doing, I always, 100% of the time, answer according to how the kids are doing, (i.e. "I'm good! The kids are all healthy, we're having a good week together....you know..." OR "Ugh, I'm okay. So-and-so were sick so we were up at this time and that the last few nights...you know..."). I rarely mention anything regarding my business, no matter how fantastic or awful things may be. In the few cases I've brought it up, the responses have been a bit confused. I think it's a hard concept to understand! I have a very small handful of friends who I feel comfortable talking about it with; the friends who are a few chapters ahead in life than me. But with my peers, it's a bit uncomfortable to talk about these dreams and hopes I have for something that isn't directly related to motherhood. Motherhood, (in my short experience thus far), is hard and funny and confusing and raw, so I'm so grateful to have friends to swap stories and experiences with. We laugh, we cry, we read, we pray, we encourage.

But where does Chelsea's Garage fit in? That's also a part of my life; a part that is really good, exciting, challenging, sometimes funny, (and sometimes not). Yet, where does it fit in with stay-at-home motherhood? If I talk about it then will people assume I'm neglecting my children? Or that I'm selfish? Or ungrateful? If you call yourself a stay-at-home Mom, does it mean you can't work on projects unrelated to motherhood? What if you're a stay-at-home Mom who loves her children to the deepest depths of her core, but finds it difficult to actually stay at home? Are you in the wrong field?

I'm not going to pretend that I've mastered the balance of owning and operating a small business alongside raising our three kids here at home. It's very, very hard. But, it's a choice I still stand behind after 2.5 years. My babes are growing up around a creative business and are an integral part of it themselves. They help me pick pieces of furniture. They help me pick paint colors, (and I listen to them)! They even help me with first coats of paint now and then. Our oldest, the twins, are starting preschool this fall and I'm so grateful to have had these years all together before school begins to share this business with them. Who knows, when they're older it may be something they want to be a bigger part of! If not, that's okay, too! The point is, it's been our adventure together and that's irreplaceable.

So, about this identity crisis. I'm not really sure how to fix it; all I'm sure of is that Life will continue moving forward and Chelsea's Garage is nothing without my family.

My hope for this post is to create a bit of discussion. Any thoughts to add? Please feel free to share in a comment and/or email me! I'd love to hear what you have to add from your own experience, mother or not, business owner or not. All are welcome to speak up!

Thank you so much for reading what's been on my heart.

~Chelsea